Pliers



(No Model.)

W. M. MORTON.

PLIERS.

No. 583.215. Patented May 25,1897.

Witnesses. Inventor.

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UNITED STATES PATENT lEErcE.

VILLIAM M. IWIORTON, OF NEV HAVEN, CONNECTICUT.

PLIERS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 583,215, dated May 25,1897.

Application filed September 10, 1896. Serial No. 605,370. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

a citizen of the United States, residing at New Haven, in the county ofNew Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Pliers; and I do hereby declare the following to be afull, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.

My invention relates to that class of pliers and similar tools,comprising two grippingjaws and handle-levers for moving them toward andaway from each other, in which the jaws maintain a true parallelism toeach other throughout their movement; and it has for its object toprovide a toolof this nature in which both thev jaws and thehandle-levers are or may be formed from sheet metal which will have anenlarged central throat between the jaws when separated to receive a rodor other device thrust longitudinally between them and which will beprovided with means for automatically compensating for wear of itspivot-joints and other contacting surfaces.

To these ends my invention consists in the tool constructed andoperating as herein after fully described, and particularly pointed outin the claims.

Referring to the drawings, in which like characters designate like partsin the several views, Figure 1 is a side view of a tool embodying myinvention with the gripping-jaws in their closed position. Fig. 2 is apartial longitudinal section thereof with the jaws in their eXtreme openposition. Fig. 3 is a partial longitudinal section taken at line a: x ofFig. l and at a right angle to the section shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 4 showsthe blank of sheet metal from which each of the jaws is formed. Fig. 5is a side view of a jaw formed from said blank. Fig. 6 is a detail viewof one of the rocking fulcrums against which the jaws bear.

The letters a and b designate the two handle-levers, which are formed upfrom sheet metal into concavo-convex shape in cross-section andterminate at their front end in the flattened parallel fingers a b',through which pass the rivets c c in alinement with each other, whichrivets form the pivotal center for said levers and at the same timeleave a clear space between the fingers a' b', as is common in thisclass of tools.

The letters d and e designate the two grippingjaws, which are eachformed from a sheet-metal blank, (shown in Fig. 4,) said blank havingthe head 2, containing the holes 3 3, and having a portion of its stockremoved at its opposite end to form the arms 4 4, internal shoulders 56, and intermediate strip 7. At their outer side the arms 4 4 areprovided with the curved portion 8 for a purpose which will presentlyappear. Said blank is bent in the planes indicated by broken lines tocause the two arms 4 4 to stand parallel with each other and at a rightangle to the strip 7, as shown in Fig. 5, and the strip 7 is benttransversely to cause it to conform to the shoulders 5 G, but is leftwith its free end slightly separated from the adjacent edge of I[hearms, as shown, to cause it to act as a leaf-spring. The acting face 9of the jaw thus formed is preferably checked, as shown in Fig. 3, orotherwise roughened, as usual.

The jaws d e are connected to the fingers a h' of the handle-levers a bat the outer ends of said fingers by the screw-bolts f, which passthrough holes in said fingers and through the holes 3 3 of the jaws andreceive nuts g at their opposite end.

The arms 4 of each jaw project within the front end of the handle-leveropposite to the one upon which it is pivotally hung, and the outercurved surfaces 8 of said arms bear against the inner edge of saidhandle-lever at the base of the fingers d or 1;/ thereof, as the ncasemay be, as shown in Fig. 2, said contacting surfaces being held inconstant engagem ent with each other by swivel-pins 7L, seated inthehandle-levers and having the central flattened portion 71/, (see Fig.6,) which bear against the faces of the spring-strips 7 at the rear ofthe shoulders 6 of \said arms. The curvature of the surfaces 8 of thearms 4 is such that as the jaws move from their eXtreme open position(shown in Fig. 2) to their closed position,(shown in Fig. 1,) and viceversa,their acting faces 9 are maintained in a truly parallel relationto each other. The strip 7 has each of its side edges provided with anotch or recess lO (see Fig. 5) to receive the edges of the inner headsof the rivets c cv in the closed position of th'e'jaws.

By reason of the fact that both the jaws and the handle-levers of thetool thus constructed IOO IOS

are made from sheet meta-l the tool can be manufactured at acomparatively small cost, and inasmuch as the arms 4 4 of the jaws areguided for their movement at their side edges instead of being slottedfor such purpose a suiiicient amount of stock is left in said arms togive ample strength and rigidity to the jaws. I thus secure a light butvery strong and durable tool.

By providing the arms 4 4 of the jaws with the shoulders 5 and G andguiding said arms, as described, I secure an increased amount of clearspace between the jaws when open'to receive a bolt, rod, or other devicethrust between them, a matter of much importance in the use of thisclass of tools. Attention is also called to the fact that thefulcrum-pins h bein g swiveled and the bearing-surface between them andthe arms of the jaws being distributed over the entire area of theirflattened sides h the liability of reduction of said contacting surfacesby wear is very much less than would be the case if a round and rigidfulcrum-pin were elnployed. At the same time the spring action of thestrip 7 is such as to automatically compensate for any wear between saidsurfaces or between the opposite edges of the arms 4 and the backs ofthe handle-levers, so that no looseness between the jaws and thehandle-levers can develop, however long` the tool may be used.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination with a pair of bifurcated handle-levers composed ofsheet metal, the forked ends of said levers crossing each other andbeing connected to each other by independent pivots located in the sameaxial line, of two jaws also composed of sheet metal pivotally connectedto said handle-levers respectively at the front end of the latter, eachof said jaws being provided with a rearwardlyextending arm having anouter curved side which bears against the inner side of the handie-leveropposite to the one upon which the jaw is supported and having a flatinner side, said handle-levers being provided with swiveled pins havinga flattened side which bears against the said iiat sides of said armsrespectively, substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. The combination with the pair of handle-levers provided withfulcrum-pins as described, of the jaws pivotally connected to saidlevers at the front end of the latter, each of said jaws being providedwith a rearwardlyextending arm having a curved outer side which bearsagainst the inner side of the handle-lever opposite to the one uponwhich it is pivoted and having upon its opposite side a flat springmember which bears against the fulcrum-pin on said lever, substantiallyas and for the purpose described.

The combination with the handle-levers a b united by the independentrivets c c and provided with the swiveled fulcrum-pins z 71, disposed asdescribed, of the jawsd e pivoted to the front ends of said levers, saidjaws being provided with the rearwardly-extending arms 4 having thecurved outer side S bearing against the inner side oftlicl1andle-leverop posite to the one upon which each jaw is pivn oted,and having the spring-strip '7 bearing against the fulcrum-pin on saidlever, arranged and operating substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I allix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

VILLIAM M. MORTON. Witnesses:

J. I). DEJON, GEORGE E. HALL.

